An ion source is a device that causes gas molecules to be ionized and then accelerates and emits the ionized gas molecules and/or atoms toward a substrate. Such an ion source may be used for various purposes, including but not limited to cleaning a substrate, surface activation, polishing, etching, and/or deposition of thin film coatings/layer(s). Example ion sources are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,359,388; 6,037,717; 6,002,208; and 5,656,819, the disclosures of which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference.
FIGS. 1–2 illustrate a conventional Hall-effect, anode layer ion source. In particular, FIG. 1 is a side cross-sectional view of an ion beam source with an ion beam emitting slit defined in the cathode, and FIG. 2 is a corresponding sectional plan view along section line II—II of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a sectional plan view similar to FIG. 2, for purposes of illustrating that the FIG. 1 ion beam source may have an oval and/or racetrack-shaped ion beam emitting slit as opposed to a circular ion beam emitting slit. Any other suitable shape may also be used.
Referring to FIGS. 1–3, the ion source includes a hollow housing made of a highly magnetoconductive (or permeable) material such as iron, which is used as a cathode 5. Cathode 5 includes cylindrical or oval side wall 7, a closed or partially closed bottom wall 9, and an approximately flat top wall 11 in which a circular or oval ion emitting slit and/or aperture 15 is defined. The bottom 9 and side wall(s) 7 of the cathode are optional. Ion emitting slit/aperture 15 includes an inner periphery as well as an outer periphery.
Deposition and/or plasma maintenance gas supply aperture or hole(s) 21 is/are formed in bottom wall 9. Flat top wall 11 functions as an accelerating electrode. A magnetic system including a cylindrical permanent magnet 23 with poles N and S of opposite polarity is placed inside the housing between bottom wall 9 and top wall 11. The purpose of the magnetic system with a closed magnetic circuit formed by the magnet 23 and cathode 5 is to induce a substantially transverse magnetic field (MF) in an area proximate ion emitting slit 15. The ion source may be entirely or partially within wall 50. In certain instances, wall 50 may entirely surround the source and substrate 45, while in other instances the wall 50 may only partially surround the ion source and/or substrate.
A circular or oval shaped conductive anode 25, electrically connected to the positive pole of electric power source 29, is arranged so as to at least partially surround magnet 23 and be approximately concentric therewith. Anode 25 may be fixed inside the housing by way of insulative ring 31 (e.g., of ceramic). Anode 25 defines a central opening therein in which magnet 23 is located. The negative pole of electric power source 29 is connected to cathode 5, so that the cathode is negative with respect to the anode (e.g., the cathode may be grounded). FIG. 1 illustrates that portions of both the inner and outer cathode 5 portions overhang parts of the anode 25, thereby creating areas of overhang OH.
Generally speaking, the anode 25 is generally biased positive by several hundred to a few thousand volts. Meanwhile, the cathode (the term “cathode” as used herein includes the inner and/or outer portions thereof) is generally held at, or close to, ground potential. This is the case during all aspects of source operation, including during a mode in which the source is being cleaned.
The conventional ion beam source of FIGS. 1–3 is intended for the formation of a unilaterally directed tubular (in the case of a standard beam collimated mode for example) ion beam, flowing in the direction toward substrate 45. Substrate 45 may or may not be biased in different instances. The ion beam emitted from the area of slit/aperture 15 is in the form of a circle in the FIG. 2 embodiment and in the form of an oval (e.g., race-track) in the FIG. 3 embodiment.
The conventional ion beam source of FIGS. 1–3 operates as follows in a depositing mode when it is desired to ion beam deposit a layer(s) on substrate 45. A vacuum chamber in which the substrate 45 and slit/aperture 15 are located is evacuated to a pressure less than atmospheric, and a depositing gas (e.g., a hydrocarbon gas such as acetylene, or the like) is fed into the interior of the source via gas aperture(s) 21 or in any other suitable manner. A maintenance gas (e.g., argon) may also be fed into the source in certain instances, along with the depositing gas. Power supply 29 is activated and an electric field is generated between anode 25 and cathode 5, which accelerates electrons to high energy. Anode 25 is positively biased by several hundred to a few thousand volts, and cathode 5 is at ground potential or proximate thereto as shown in FIG. 1. Electron collisions with the gas in or proximate aperture/slit 15 leads to ionization and plasma is generated. “Plasma” herein means a cloud of gas including ions of a material to be accelerated toward substrate 45. The plasma expands and fills (or at least partially fills) a region including slit/aperture 15. An electric field is produced in slit 15, oriented in the direction substantially perpendicular to the transverse magnetic field, which causes the ions to propagate toward substrate 45. Electrons in the ion acceleration space in and/or proximate slit/aperture 15 are propelled by the known E×B drift (Hall current) in a closed loop path within the region of crossed electric and magnetic field lines proximate slit/aperture 15. These circulating electrons contribute to ionization of the gas (the term “gas” as used herein means at least one gas), so that the zone of ionizing collisions extends beyond the electrical gap between the anode and cathode and includes the region proximate slit/aperture 15 on one and/or both sides of the cathode 5.
For purposes of example, consider the situation where a silane and/or acetylene (C2H2) depositing gas is/are utilized by the ion source of FIGS. 1–3 in a depositing mode. The silane and/or acetylene depositing gas passes through the gap between anode 25 and cathode 5. Unfortunately, certain of the elements in acetylene and/or silane gas is/are insulative in nature (e.g., carbide may be an insulator in certain applications).
Insulating deposits (e.g., carbide deposits, carbon deposits, and/or oxide deposits which may be insulating or semi-insulating in nature) resulting from the depositing gas can quickly build up on the respective surfaces of anode 25 and/or cathode 5 proximate the gap therebetween, and/or at other electrode locations. Unfortunately, the fact that both the inner and outer cathode 5 portions overhang parts of the anode 25 as shown in FIG. 1 causes even more deposits to build up on the portions of the anode 25 and cathode 5 in the areas of overhang OH. This can interfere with gas flow through the gap and/or aperture 15, and/or it can reduce net current thereby adversely affecting the electric field potential between the anode and cathode proximate slit/aperture 15. Such deposits resistively limit the amount of current that can flow through the source; this adversely interferes with the operability and/or efficiency of the ion source especially over significant lengths of time. This unfortunately can also result in micro-particles from the deposits making their way into a film being deposited on the substrate. In either case, operability and/or efficiency of the ion beam source is adversely affected.
In view of the above, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that there exists a need for an ion beam design which leads to less undesirable build-up on the anode and/or cathode, and/or which more efficiently permits high current operation of the ion source at low potential yielding a high flux of ions toward the substrate. In certain example situations, a design that permits rapid in situ removal of build-up is also desirable.